Rate of E-Cigarette Use Among Ontario Teens Is ‘Alarming,’ New Study Says

Over ten percent of Grade 9 students say they've used e-cigarettes, according to a recent study based in Niagara, Ontario.

The study said the kids were using e-cigs because they were "cool," "fun" and "new." (AKA the reasons everyone does anything.)

Michael Khoury, the head of the e-cigarette study, called the rate "alarming," and said it's a public health issue that needs to be addressed.

E-cigarettes are not illegal to sell in Canada, although Health Canada has never approved them either.

Health Canada said that it "continues to advise Canadians, especially youth, against the use of these products."

The federal government has yet to crack down on e-cigarettes, leaving it to the provinces to make their own legislation on the product. Eight of the 10 provinces have tabled or passed legislation to treat e-cigs similar to regular tobacco products.

A VICE Canada investigation last year found that the lack of federal regulation in e-cigs production is leaving consumers in the dark about what they could be vaping.

Studies have found that people who vape are more likely to also become smokers later on, despite the fact that many people, including tobacco smokers, are advocating for e-cigarettes as healthier options to regular cigarettes.

Khoury suggested that this growing popularity in vaping is "renormalizing" smoking behaviour.

The e-cigs study is not too out of line with other data on teen behaviour. A recent CAMH report showed that one in five Grade 7 to 12 students in Ontario reported smoking pot last year, over five percent of high school students used ecstasy, and more than a quarter of them were allowed to drink alcohol at home.

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